Sometimes you have races that you have circled on your calendar for months in advance. This was me with Vinings Down Hill 5K. I really enjoyed this race in three previous years - it was very well organized, great atmosphere, and I PR'ed this race the first two two years that I ran it. When I registered for the Vinings Down Hill 5K a few months ago, I had my heart set on attempting to PR this race.
After accepting how crazy hot and humid it has been lately, I decided to re-evaluate my goals right now. I have been carrying a faster pace for the first two miles but with a 8am start time, I knew that it was not going to be pretty come mile 3. A few weeks ago I decided to commit myself to an actual training plan for my 5K goals. This is my first training plan EVER that I am following and things are going great a few weeks into it. With my goal race coming up this fall, I knew I had would change exactly what that goal was for this year's Vinings Down Hill.
After accepting how crazy hot and humid it has been lately, I decided to re-evaluate my goals right now. I have been carrying a faster pace for the first two miles but with a 8am start time, I knew that it was not going to be pretty come mile 3. A few weeks ago I decided to commit myself to an actual training plan for my 5K goals. This is my first training plan EVER that I am following and things are going great a few weeks into it. With my goal race coming up this fall, I knew I had would change exactly what that goal was for this year's Vinings Down Hill.
I got there bright an early to make sure I had plenty of time to get parked and settled before the race. Fortunately, my friends are also early-birds so we were able to meet up and chat before the race
We got lined up about 5 minutes before the 8:00am race start. I won't lie, there was a part of me that was feeling kind of bummed thinking about what I really wanted to have this race be for me today. I had a little mental pep-talk with myself and reminded myself that today's race was about me and just remembering that I got this.
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With about 1500 runners starting at once (and starting downhill), the congestion was tough in the first 1/3 of a mile. The first 1/2 mile or so is a generous downhill and I wanted to take advantage of that start. While my first mile was not what I planned, I quickly adapted and continued trucking.
While the race is named Vinings Downhill 5K, don't let that fool you. Yes it is a point-to-point race, however you still encounter a number of long yet fairly gradual uphill portions. You have to quickly switch gears from running downhill to going uphill. Those not familiar with the course are surprised when they start the uphill portions.
The humidity was getting the best of my breathing at mile two and I started to feel a bit frustrated but I channeled that energy into my run. I was so proud of myself, I remained positive and just enjoyed the run today. I didn't worry about pace or splits - it was just about the run. As I crossed the finish line I saw that I finished about 45 seconds slower than my PR and I was totally fine with that.
While the race is named Vinings Downhill 5K, don't let that fool you. Yes it is a point-to-point race, however you still encounter a number of long yet fairly gradual uphill portions. You have to quickly switch gears from running downhill to going uphill. Those not familiar with the course are surprised when they start the uphill portions.
The humidity was getting the best of my breathing at mile two and I started to feel a bit frustrated but I channeled that energy into my run. I was so proud of myself, I remained positive and just enjoyed the run today. I didn't worry about pace or splits - it was just about the run. As I crossed the finish line I saw that I finished about 45 seconds slower than my PR and I was totally fine with that.
 Photo Credit: True Speed Photo |  |
As I mentioned earlier, this is a point-to-point race. The post race area is about a mile from the finish line (and another .5 mile from the parking deck). Participants have the option of riding the bus to the post race area or walking/running. I will take the bus, please. The buses were awesome and were loading a new bus just as the previous bus was filled and leaving so the wait was super minimal.
As we got off of the bus at Jubilee, we were greeted with freeze pops! With temps past 80 by the time we finished, it was greatly appreciated to have freeze pops on hand for us!
For this being a local race with about 1,500 participants, this post race area is AWESOME! There are some great vendors, awesome refreshments, music, fun, and more.
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As you can already guess, I highly recommend this race. Don't be fooled by "downhill" in the name and prepare for the humidity/heat and you will have a great time! In case you are wondering, yes, I already have this race on my 2018 list.
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